To Catch a Star
by bamf-tastic
Summary: Prince Septimus is on the hunt for the stone that will seal his destiny. But what if a women from his past turns up unexpectedly which causes him to question what his "destiny" really is. With her blurred past and his clouded judgement these two are in need of a little good luck. i would love it if people would rate & review!i promise i'll write more if people are interested in it
1. Prologue

Chapter 1

The Fallen Star

Prologue

Once upon a time about two hundred years ago a star fell on a clear night at the end of July. Most didn't even notice the stars arrival to Earth for many were already sound asleep in their beds for it was almost the middle of the night. However, one young couple did catch a glimpse of the fallen star during a romantic stroll just of the outskirts of a small town called Wall.

A young woman with bouncy red curls and rosy cheekbones turned her head to the sky, "Oh look Vincent, it's a falling star!"

The tall man that she had been walking with titled his head upwards ever so slightly. He flashed the girl a smile, exposing his white teeth. "It's beautiful." She stated, still staring up at the sky, as if captivated by it. The man's chocolate brown eyes were on the sky for only a moment before his gaze landed back on the girl.

"It's only half as beautiful as you my sweet Sophia." The man took the girls hands and held them tight, "The light in your smile is more captivating and brighter than any star in the sky."

Sophia bated her eyelashes shyly as her glance slipped away from his eyes. Vincent stared at her with worry hidden behind is expression,

"Is everything alright darling?" He asked placing his forefinger on her cheek and pushing her face back to meet his. A smile curved onto her red lips, "Everything's perfect."

However in the land behind the wall things weren't quite as perfect for the star that had just hit the Earth south of Stormhold. Three witches had been waiting for this moment for quite some time now. They sat waiting as a mixture of time and using their magic quickly aged their once youthful appearances. Finally a star had fallen, and one of the witches would venture out to capture the star and cut out her heart. Lamia, the eldest of the three entered a their large corridor with much energy that July night,

"My sisters, a star has fallen!" Two other witches move slowly out of their dusty beds to greet their sister.

"Are you sure Lamia?" The youngest sister, Empusa asked doubtfully. The previous time there had been news of a star it simply turned out to be a wild rumor and used one good Babylon candle on a wasted trip. Empusa was a sure she would not let that foolishness happen again.

"Yes I am sure, if you do not believe me then let us check."

The plump middle sister, Mormo, nodded her head and pulled a small ferret out of a cage. With little remorse, the witch drove a knife into the ferret's stomach and ripped it open.

"Lamia is right a star has fallen! And just south of Stormhold." Mormo spoke as Empusa sighed with relief. Lamia stepped forward, "I will go, and it shall not be a long journey for we still have a bit of Babylon candle left." The other sisters nodded in agreement.

It took a year for the witches to find the fallen star. For a while it seemed as if it had almost completely fallen off the map. Although, Lamia caught up with her in a market within Stormhold on a rainy June morning. Never before had that happened. Never before had a star gone missing without a trace for so long. The three sisters felt proud and eager that they had finally caught the missing star, and once more their beauty had been restored with the taste of her heart.

However what they did not know was that within the walls of Stormhold held the reason the star was so untraceable for such a long period of time. In a small cottage deep within Stormhold lived a newly widowed man and a small child. The child had hair as red a fire itself and eyes as crystal blue as any neither sea nor river. And when this child laughed or smiled, she shined as bright as the biggest star in the sky.


	2. The Dark Prince

Chapter 2

The Dark Prince

~300 years later~

"The cost is 1 Florin. Take the price or get out of my face." A twenty something girl snapped, placing her hands down hard on an oak table. The man standing across the table scoffed at her attempt to be intimidating and shoved his hands deep into the pockets of his purple suede jacket.

"Miss-" He paused, gesturing to her to share her name.

"Chappe, Lyra Chappe." She growled through tight teeth. The man smirked slightly, placing his large fist back into the depths of his pocket, "Miss Chappe I hardly find this," He held up an item that had been hanging from a long metal pole with several short branches, if you will, sticking out of it. On each branch hung a different colored necklace, some with large emeralds and ruby's gawking the small thin silver and gold chains they hung by. Others embroiled with small gems and diamonds along a thicker, more durable chain.

The man continued his comment, "to be worth 1 Florin."

The woman narrowed her thin brow, her cerulean blue eyes piecing into his gaze. The man looked away awkwardly and continued speaking,

"What does it even do?" He asked, now afraid to anger the adequately frustrated market girl.

Lyra pulled her hands off the table and stepped back, a smile now creeping onto her once stern expression. "It brings good luck," She removed the necklace from its holding place and held it up, "Is that something you're interested in?" The girl flashed a somewhat cheeky smile when the man silently nodded his head.

"The diamond was fished out of the deepest of seas when the lost city of Atlantis was discovered, it is said the ruler of the city lost this the day before the entire city was emerged underwater." The man once more shoved his hands into the pockets of his jacket, however this time he pulled out a shiny golden Florin and set it on the table.

"I'll take it!" He spoke enthusiastically. Lyra smiled and handed him the necklace, "Good luck" She said as the man walked back into the sea of people at the market place. She was frowning now, realizing that was probably going to be the only sale of the day. Lyra dropped her body back onto a wooden chair. She leaned backwards, her long, flowing milk white dress nearly getting caught underneath one of its legs. She sighed and let a puff of air escape her mouth causing a strand of her curly red hair to rise into the air for only a moment.

Meanwhile only a little down the markets street entered a man on a black stallion. People walking near him were wary and had certain look of fear in their eyes as the moved swiftly past.

"The runes led me here; I'll never find the damned stone amongst this!" He held out a long arm, gesturing to the large crowd swarming the street. The man glared through the horde of people and leaned over slightly letting his medium-length black hair fall over his face.

"_I had been so close to the stone…_" He spoke inside his head, staring down at the runes in his hand_. _

"Prince Septimus-" He looked up, wiping the look of despair from his face. A man was standing beneath him, "We just got word a women, here in the market place, seems to have your stone."

A dark smile twisted onto the prince's face, "Well bring her to me!" He dropped down off his horse his black boots making a thud when hitting the dirt ground. Actually this man was completely dressed in the gloomy color of black, causing him to stand out amongst the crowd of people dressed in bright, fun colors. He had broad shoulders and muscular torso which was possibly due to the years of training and sword fighting. Not much more can be told about the man's body due to the layers of clothing that covered him, this was odd, due to the fact it was nearly the end of August and the air still had the lingering warm air from summer. He stood by his horse and waited for his men to bring the stone stealing girl to him.

"This be the girl." Septimus glanced up and his face nearly gave away the intense feeling that had just jolted him.

"Will you let me go?" The girl snapped, flipping her bright red hair from her face. Septimus studied her for a moment; her heart shaped face, rosy red cheeks against her pale flesh tone, her small but full lips, even the small scar that was so faded underneath her right eye. Her eyes were what caught his attention though, those intense sharp blue eyes, why'd he'd recognize those anywhere. Realizing the others were staring at him, waiting for a reaction, he quickly grabbed her arm and squeezed it tight,

"Did you sell my stone to some low life moron that walks the streets of this market place?" The women was taken back by his word usage and shot him a disgusted look of surprise.

"I have never seen this bloody stone you're going on about! Now please release me!" She pulled her arm but his grip only grew tighter.

Passersby stopped and stared at the scene in fear, but no one said anything, no one would even make eye contact for a long period of time. It seems this girl was not the only person Prince Septimus struck fear into.

"Tell me who you sold the stone too!" He was practically yelling now, the sound of his deep voice raising made the girl jump.

"I told you I don't know what you're talking about!" She cried. Septimus released her, looking past her at his men, "She's coming with us till I find the whereabouts of the stone." He jumped back on his horse and looked down at the girl. She seemed afraid but wouldn't let it show on her stern expression.

"I'm not going anywhere with you." She scoffed, crossing her arms. Septimus raised an eyebrow as the corner of her mouth twisted up into a small smile, "Get on the blasted horse, or die." His smile disappeared and his face was now expressionless. The girl swallowed hard, "Well is someone going to help me up? I am in a dress you know." She looked down to her feet, her white, thin strapped dress catching a slight breeze revealing the fact she was wearing thin material shoes. Septimus couldn't help but roll his eyes, "Climb on." He held out his arm, she grabbed on with her small hands and he pulled her up on the horse behind him.

"So what, am I a prisoner now?" She asked as the group took off on their horses through the market. Septimus didn't answer her, he stared forward trying to ignore the heavy feeling in his gut.

"_She doesn't remember me." _He spoke inside his head, _"And hopefully she never will."_


	3. The Softer Side

"So where are we going exactly?" Lyra questioned. Septimus did not respond, he merely closed his eyes momentarily then reopened them. "Ahh…" She spoke leaning back on the horse, "I see you just aren't going to talk to me."

Septimus once more said nothing; he had no intention of speaking to her unless it was completely necessary, for he had promised himself he would not allow her to distract him from his quest.

"Well do I have something to share with you!" She spat, clearly furious, "Who in the hell do you think you are showing up and kidnapping me without any explanation? Why you no good thieving, reckless, good for nothing, arrogant-"

Septimus cut her off mid-sentence. He spoke in a well-mannered voice, even though his patience and temper were reaching sky rocketing levels, "Prince." Lyra raised her brow, "Prince?" Her face suddenly read a look of utter confusion, or the same particular expression one would wear prior to getting hit by an oncoming train.

Septimus nodded his head, "You forget to add Prince in your seemingly long list of words to describe me.

Lyra scoffed, "Prince? You're a bloody prince? Do you think because you're of royal blood you can make kidnapping perfectly okay?"

Finally having enough of her sharp tongue and sour attitude, Septimus pulled on the reins of his black stallion, making the beast whinny and come to a violent halt. He spun around to face her, his cold eyes flashing a warning of what was to come. Lyra scooted back on the horse a bit.

"I am the seventh son, and future king of Stormhold!" His eyes narrowed as he continued, "And I would appreciate it if you-" He studied the girl momentarily with a sheer look of disgust, "A poor market girl, would stop talking before I throw you from this horse and leave you to the wolves. Do you understand?"

Lyra bit her bottom lip hard until metallic taste dripped into her mouth. She said nothing, and nodded her head. Septimus faced front once more and whipped the horse's reins. The sudden movement nearly caused Lyra to tumble off the horse and fall, so she grabbed his waist to hold herself upright but almost immediately let go when she saw him glance over his shoulder at her.

Lyra sat up poking at the slowly dying fire. It crackled as the end of her stick touched the hot ashes underneath the dwindling pile of wood. Septimus' team had stopped for the night to eat and rest after nearly an entire day of riding through a seemingly endless route of dirt paths through the woods.

Although Lyra herself could not seem to even shut her eyes long enough to sleep through the night. So she found herself here, sitting up alone staring at a campfire which would soon perish and leave her alone in darkness.

The sound of a branch snapping behind her made her spin around quickly, holding the small stick up in defense. The figure, still hidden by darkness, chuckled a bit before speaking, "You know, that stick would not do you any good in a real battle." Lyra lowered her weapon and casted an irritated glare as the figure stepped out of the darkness and into the dim light coming off the fire.

"I should have known it was you." Lyra growled quietly as Septimus took a seat down on the log opposite her in front of the fire. She glanced up at him, her already bright blue eyes seemed to be almost glowing against the light from the fire, "What keeps you up at this hour?"

"Too much on my mind…" He practically mumbled, but Lyra still heard him anyway.

"All that stone hunting and destiny stuff not working out as you planned?" She asked, avoiding eye contact but knowing she was being given a riled glare.

"It's not as easy as it may sound. I thought by this point Primus would be long dead and I would be the ruler of Stormhold." Lyra raised an eyebrow,

"Has it not only been two days?" She seemed slightly shocked by his high expectations. Septimus nodded his head and dropped his glaze to the fire for only a moment, then looked back up at her. They locked eyes when he spoke, "Did you steal and then sell my stone?" He asked, returning the conversation to the original question that had started this whole thing.

Lyra looked away quickly, "I've never seen the stone you spoke of. That is my story and I'm sticking to it." Septimus dragged his hands down his face wearily, "Then I suppose there is no point of dragging you along with me then."

Lyras' lips curved into a smirk as she began poking the ashes once more, "I don't really mind the adventure."

Septimus hid a smile behind his hand, being very wary not to let her see it. He stood up, brushing the soot from the fire off his pants, "It's rather late, perhaps we should both be heading to bed, and I will leave you out here if you're in a cranky attitude tomorrow."

She smiled to herself as he stalked off into the darkness once more. There was something bothering her about all of this. It wasn't even the fact that the previous day she had been kidnapped by a strange angry Prince, or the fact she was now on a dangerous adventure with a man she didn't really trust or know.

Suddenly it occurred to her what was bothering her about this whole situation, she felt like she did know him. That he wasn't some stranger that threw her onto the back of a horse. It was an annoying feeling, like if someone were to continuously pinch your skin and no matter how much you pleaded they just wouldn't stop. The feeling was gnawing at her mind at all hours of the day. Perhaps this is why she couldn't sleep. Finally with a deep breath she stood up and kicked out the final flames of the fire.

Meanwhile across their camping site Septimus lay on his back staring up at the stars. The constant reminder of a mistake he had made 17 years ago stung in his mind. He pushed those thoughts away as he closed his eyes once more attempting sleep. He tried to remember a time when he was happy, when his only goal in life wasn't becoming the king of Stormhold and killing all of his brothers to do so. It was then one memory filled his mind from when he was younger. He could almost remember the exact rhythm of the music playing, he can practically smell the wide variety of foods spread out amongst the dining table, and he can almost hear the sound of her laugh ringing through the grand ball room…

"_He's looking at you again." A young girl with wavy black hair whispered to her friend. The girl she was talking to playfully hit her arm, "Una stop!" The girls giggled standing near the long dining table which was placed off to the side to make room for the dancing couples in the middle of the white marble floor._

"_This place is beautiful." The red headed girl spoke tilting her head back to admiring the crystal chandlers and the detailed paintings and ribbons that hung from the ceiling high above the floor. "Just think Lyra, just a few days ago this place was covered in dust and cluttered with old furniture." Una smiled, admiring the room as well. _

"_Yeah until we cleaned it." Lyra mumbled taking a sip of a red liquid from a crystal glass. She wasn't quite sure what it was, but Primus insisted on trying it. It tasted vinegary which made Lyra's nose scrunch up. _

"_Did you really expect my brothers to do such work?" Una said, Lyra shrugged her shoulders in agreement. Now a days the boys spent most of their days training and sword fighting, both Una and Lyra never really spoke of what the brothers were preparing for. However, they did both know, and the thought of it made them both sick._

_Una looked at Lyra again and smiled. "Seriously go over there I know you want too." She bit her lip trying to contain the excitement that had just overwhelmed her. Lyra rolled her eyes and looked out into the crowd of people. _

_Between the couples dancing on the other side of the room where five brothers stood looking awkwardly amongst the room. Sextmus and Quintus however were not there… it seems as though the brothers had already begun picking each other off. But tonight was a special night, it was the annual Stormhold ball which is held every summer, and it appears the boys were probably told to behavior this evening. This is probably the only explanation for them all standing together at one time._

_She then noticed the youngest brother, Septimus staring at her from across the room. He, Una, and she were all the same age currently, sixteen, but Septimus was only days away from his seventeenth birthday._

_Lyra blushed furiously, "Please go over there." Una begged in her ear. Lyra turned to her for a moment, "I find it odd you're pressuring me to flirt with your brother." Una didn't respond, but the same enthusiastic expression hung on her face. Lyra rolled her eyes and shoved her drinking glass into her friends' hand._

"_Hold this will you?" With that she began to walk away hearing Una let out a short shriek of excitement. When Lyra crossed the floor she didn't approach Septimus at first, instead she walked around the area they were standing, pretending to look for something._

"_Need any help Lyra?" She spun around when hearing the exact voice she wanted to hear. "Septimus! I didn't see you there." She lied. Septimus glanced over his shoulder to see his elder brothers watching him with looks of amusement glimmering on their faces._

_He turned awkwardly away from them. "Lyra-would you like to dance?" He asked quickly. She smiled softly, took his hand and led him out to the dance floor._

_Septimus placed one hand on her hip and the other in her hand. He didn't really mention he had never really been a skillful dancer, but with his other four brothers watching, practically waiting for him to mess up so they could all laugh about it later, he refused to seem any less than a professional. _

"_You're quite a good dancer" She lied again, for he had stepped on her feet almost five times since they first approached the dance floor. Septimus smiled, "You don't have to lie- they can't hear you over here." He gestured to his brothers and Lyra laughed. _

"_Good, because you may be good at something's Septimus, but you are a terrible dancer." They curly red hair bouncing off her shoulders with every movement. It was hard for Septimus to concentrate on not stepping all over her floor length green gown, but he couldn't help but noticed she had a certain glow about her, every single time she smiled._

With that final thought on his mind Septimus finally drifted off asleep, a small smile curving on his face.

**I hope this explains why Septimus has been acting a bit out a character so far in the story. I really hope everyone is enjoying the story so far, everything will all make sense soon I promise! And don't worry, Septimus' nasty side will begin to show soon enough! Rate & Review please and thank you!**


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